


Echo

by Destiny_in_the_Universe



Series: Let the Skies Brighten [1]
Category: Heathers (1988), Heathers: The Musical - Murphy & O'Keefe
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Blood and Violence, Derogatory Language, Domestic Violence, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, F/F, Heather Duke is mostly based on her movie counterpart, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Manipulative Relationship, Physical Abuse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-08
Updated: 2019-04-08
Packaged: 2020-01-06 15:46:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,107
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18391463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Destiny_in_the_Universe/pseuds/Destiny_in_the_Universe
Summary: “I'm out on the edge and I'm screaming my name, Like a fool at the top of my lungs.”- Jason Walker, EchoIt began half way through the school year when she met her, all smiles and secret dates at diners. She tried, really, especially when her most recent breakup with a boy had ended terribly and she had grown desperate for more company.





	Echo

**Author's Note:**

> What happens in the series is not in any way funny or acceptable behavior. Heather Duke's treatment in her relationship is not in any way kind nor is it anything pretty. 
> 
> If you are being abused, tell someone. Do not allow someone to take advantage of you in such horrible manners. If you think you are trapped, there are hotlines that can help you escape it. 
> 
> National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233
> 
> Do not hesitate to reach out to someone. It can save your life.

It began half way through the school year when she met her, all smiles and secret dates at diners. She tried, really, especially when her most recent breakup with a boy had ended terribly and she had grown desperate for more company.

 

The weeks that followed were pure bliss for Duke, the young seventeen-year-old acting like a romantic sap, hiding her newfound relationship from her friends. The trips to the coffee shop, laughing at the small jokes made by her date, or staying in bed with her girlfriend, brushing her lips as she smelled the fragrance of perfume.

 

Oh, it had been the best time of her life and the relationship was going wonderfully, but then things took a drastic turn.

 

Heather Duke ran a hand through her hair, the redhead leaning against the wall as a happy sigh escaped her lips while she waited for her girlfriend to come home. She grinned to herself, hearing the door open though she suddenly jumped at the sound of it slamming out of nowhere. Frowning in apparent concern, she glanced at the eighteen-year-old woman and decided to figure out what was wrong.

 

“Rough day at work?” Heather asked.

 

“I was fired,” her girlfriend, Callie, sighed, a scowl on her lips. Her pale green eyes were flashing with anger and she turned to Duke with a smile, fingers entwining into the other’s palms. “But you can help my day, can’t you?” She purred.

 

Duke hummed softly, gasping in delight when lips moved onto hers, the two adolescents wasting no time in slipping tongues into each other’s mouths. She yelped suddenly when she was pinned to the wall, hands trailing beneath her shirt and moving towards her pants. A weak whine escaped her lips, feeling herself grow uncomfortable with this.

 

In a fit of panic, the redhead gently pushed Callie away, a way of showing she wanted to stop.

 

Callie’s eyes turned into narrowed slits, a small hiss escaping her mouth.

 

“You stupid slut! I’m trying to relax after a long day!” She snapped.

 

Duke gasped, the redhead frowning as she held her ground and snarled, “I don’t want it, Callie!”

 

Heather yelped in alarm when Callie backhanded her across the right cheek, wincing when she realized it was throbbing. She bit down on her lip for a moment then shook her head from side to side.

 

“Callie, I don’t want to do this right now. Just… can’t we cuddle on the couch or something?” Duke questioned with a slimmer of a smile. She received a sudden scoff, only dampening her mood more.

 

“Go wash the dishes, Heather. If you can’t keep me happy, you might as well do something useful.” Callie practically ordered.

 

“Callie, but-”

 

“Did I ask?!” Callie barked, advancing on Duke. She was quick to corner her partner to the wall, one hand gripping the other’s wrists and squeezing tightly, drawing a pained gasp from the green-eyed student. “Do as I say… or else…”

 

“You’re hurting me Duke muttered, trying to pull away from Callie but to no avail. She wa so confused and her heart was racing heavily, not understanding what was causing this change of emotions in her girlfriend.

 

“I- Heather, I’m sorry. It’s just been a long day. I just would really if you did the dishes… please, love.”

 

And she believed the apology.

 

Duke would cut corners just to make Callie happy, taking in every seemingly sincere apology to heart. What began as a simple “long day” spiraled down into yelling, a slap across the face. Her grades slowly started to slip, plans with her friends would be declined out of nowhere, and even her once sassy demeanor began to fade.

 

She tried, and tried, but it was quickly diminished by the jeering comments made by Callie.

 

“Don’t you want to lose some weight, babe? It looks a little too tight on you.”

 

“Can’t you do anything right, you pathetic piece of shit?”

 

“You’re going to get fatter. Lose the calories.”

 

Duke knew they were true. She was too fat. She’d been trying to lose weight for the longest time now, but it wasn’t enough. She couldn’t even escape her own date, with being manipulated into turning to the tables into believing it was her own fault.

 

She felt like she was drowning.

 

Nights were spent locked in her room, the redhead adolescent sniffling softly as she wiped at her eyes.

Heather was crying, ignoring the sound of the door slamming like it normally did nowadays. She felt like she couldn’t breathe anymore, her head burying into her arms as she heard the yelling.

 

“DUKE!”

 

Scrambling to her feet, Duke rushed downstairs and tried to smile at Callie though it quickly slipped away, seeing the frown on her apparent significant other’s lips.

 

“Why isn’t dinner ready?”

 

“I thought-”

 

“Heather, get to it! NOW!” Callie’s hand slammed down on the side of the table they usually ate at.

 

“I’m sorry…” Duke muttered. She flinched before moving towards the stove and beginning to cook, fighting back the urge to cry. Why didn’t she just leave Callie?

 

“You better be, you little whore.”

 

Her temper flared as quickly as it came and Duke’s teeth gritted down, whirling around to face the other.

 

“I’m tired of you putting me down and making me feel like trash! I’m not some- some whore!” Duke snarled, panting softly as soon as she finished her small rant. She startled when Callie grabbed her by the wrist, holding her tightly.

 

“Callie, let me go,” Duke hissed. “I’m-” she struggled against Callie, though it only ended in being pinned in place, unable to fully move.

 

“I think you need to be taught your place.” Callie frowned.

 

Duke fought her once more before she screamed out in pain from her hand being placed on top of the hot stove. She bit back a choked sob, the redhead feeling her eyes stinging while her palm throbbed.

 

“Don’t ever raise your voice to me again. Do you understand?”

 

Heather stopped struggling, her green eyes filling with tears as she nodded.

 

“Y-Yes, ple-please let me-me go!” She replied, biting down on her lip to keep from crying out. Duke stumbled forward the second she was released, and wiped at her nose and mouth. She whimpered softly, ignoring Callie heading into the living room.

The redhead sniffed a bit, before she turned her gaze towards the window.

 

Duke glanced down, knowing full well she would never get away. She’d prayed on different occasions for it to end, to just find someone who would rescue her, even for herself to find the courage to say no.

 

But it never came.

  


**Author's Note:**

> What happens in this fanfic will not be pretty at times. But the behavior that Duke displays is common in abuse victims. Abuse victims tend to stick around their abusers, not because they want to, but because they don’t want to leave them in fear of angering them or even due to the fact they don’t have anywhere to go. 
> 
> Duke feels immensely trapped in her relationship with Callie, but she eventually will be breaking free of that. The story is meant to be a progress of her abusive relationship up to when she finally escapes and finds someone who can truly make her happy.
> 
> Feel free to leave comments~


End file.
